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Royal Caribbean Reviews

Oasis of the Seas, during its construction, in Turku, Finland.

With a fleet that includes some of the world’s biggest cruise ships, and a history of being at the forefront of cruising innovation, Royal Caribbean is one of the biggest names in the cruise business — and, among the mainstream lines, one of the best. Our Royal Caribbean reviews help you to make informed cruise vacation decisions about which Royal Caribbean ship best fits your style.

Big Ships, Innovative Features

Allure of the Seas, Royal Caribbean’s newest vessel, is the largest cruise ship in the world. Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean

The line’s push for larger and larger ships began with its launch of the 73,200-ton Sovereign of the Seas in 1988, then went supersized with the 1999 launch of the 138,000-ton, 3,114-guest Voyager of the Seas, which tore up the rule book for cruise ship design and attractions.

A decade later, fully half of the line’s fleet is made up of Voyager‘s sister ships and their newer and larger cousins, including the 5,400-guest Oasis of the Seaand Allure of the Seas, the current world record holders. Beyond size, Royal Caribbean has also been an innovator in terms of the kinds of things you can do aboard ships — from rock climbing, ice skating, and ziplining to seeing full-scale Broadway shows and strolling around in a 21,000-square-foot open-air tropical garden.

Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean

All in all, Royal Caribbean’s ships offer the largest variety of activities and sports facilities at sea, and the newer and bigger the ship, the more it offers.

Voyager-class ships offer rock-climbing walls, ice-skating rinks, basketball and volleyball courts, miniature-golf courses, in-line skating tracks, enormous gyms and spas, and great children’s facilities that include an outdoor kids’ pool area with a waterslide. The larger Freedom-class ships add an on-deck surfing simulator, a huge kids’ water park full of water canons and sprayers, and a boxing ring in the gym. The Oasis-class ships take everything to the next level, with everything from the older ships plus a while open-air, “boardwalk”-themed district devoted to family entertainment, a huge outdoor pool that puts on high-dive shows, and some of the biggest kids’ facilities at sea.

While the line’s older Radiance-, Vision-, and Monarch-class ships don’t offer quite as many high-profile diversions, Royal Caribbean has been good at retrofitting some of the WOW elements from its newer ships to the older ones, where it can.

Entertainment on Royal Caribbean

The Alahambra Theatre aboard Independence of the Seas. Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean

Entertainment-wise, Royal Caribbean is among the best at sea. Its newest ships, Oasis and Allure of the Seas, both feature real Broadway productions—Chicago: The Musical on Allure and Hairspray! on Oasis, and the line is working toward expanding that trend out to other ships in the fleet.

There are also song-and-dance revues, dance competitions, karaoke, and some amazing ice shows on the Voyager-, Freedom-, and Oasis-class ships.

Royal Caribbean For Families

Dreamworks characters – like the penguins from the movie Madagascar – turn up aboard Allure of the Seas. Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean.

For kids, a recent and still-expanding partnerships with DreamWorks Animation brings characters from films like Madagascar, Shrek, and Kung Fu Panda aboard for parades, character breakfasts, photo ops, and other programming. Currently, the DreamWorks events are only aboard Oasis, Allure, Liberty, and Freedom of the Seas.

Features like the DreamWorks experience, the huge kids’ centers and nonstop kids’ activities, the outdoor water parks make Royal Caribbean one of the top two choices in the cruise business for families with young kids, along with Disney Cruise Line.

The Boardwalk, near Central Park aboard Oasis of the Seas. Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean

Royal Caribbean has even begun catering to the babies-and-toddlers crowd, with “Royal Babies” interactive classes for parents and kids 6 to 36 months. Aboard Oasis, Allure, Freedom, Liberty, and Radiance of the Seas, there are also Royal Babies and Tots nurseries that offers professional care, playgroups, and activities for the youngest youngsters. Expect more nurseries to open across the fleet as Royal Caribbean continues to retrofit its newer innovations to its older vessels.

Dining On Royal Caribbean

Casual dining is always available in the Windjammer Cafe. Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean.

Dining aboard Royal Caribbean is a mix of cruise traditions and newer innovations. As aboard many other lines, you can choose to either take your dinner in the main restaurant at a fixed time, or you can choose the “My Time Dining” option and eat whenever it’s most convenient for you that day. You can also dine at one of the ships’ alternative, extra-cost specialty restaurants; have a casual dinner at the open-seating buffet restaurant; or grab a quick bite from a variety of coffee shops, pizzerias, and other options scattered around the ships.

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Royal Caribbean Cruise Reviews

To read a review of a particular ship, click the link under "Read the Review." If applicable, our Live Voyage Reports offer a day-by-day overview of an actual cruise onboard. In some cases, there may be more than one report, to be sure to see if your favorite destination is represented.

(The Royal
Caribbean crew members told us that it was because of the bad weather we
weren’t able to properly travel, and that it is not their responsibility. We
did not pay money to the weather, we did not book a cruise with the weather.
They say it’s the weather’s responsibility- even though they were the ones who
planned and carried out the cruise. If you ever take a Royal Caribbean Cruise,
you’re apparently making a contract with the weather.)

My family
recently cruised on Royal Caribbean Cruises, Majesty of the Seas, for three
days and four nights. It was the most recommended and had the best reviews. The
first night was spent in Miami, the next day was spent in Nassau, and the ship
was scheduled to arrive in CocoCay by the second day. This is considered the
highlight of the cruise, and it was the reason why we booked in the first place.
However, the captain reported that morning that because of weather conditions,
the ship would not be able to dock on the island. The entire day was spent on
sea with few activities or entertainment. The next day was supposed to be in
Key West, however the captain reported again that weather conditions were not
ideal and we wouldn’t be able to dock. Out of the three places we were supposed
to visit, we only went to one. Everyone on the cruise was very upset, as we
spent nearly three whole days on the sea with nothing to do. When we contacted
the customer service after the cruise, they claimed they held no responsibility
and that we could not get any compensation. We ended up calling several
different representatives, but they only repeated that it was not their
responsibility and that we couldn’t do anything to get any refunds.

My family
recently cruised on Royal Caribbean Cruises, Majesty of the Seas, for three
days and four nights. It was the most recommended and had the best reviews. The
first night was spent in Miami, the next day was spent in Nassau, and the ship
was scheduled to arrive in CocoCay by the second day. This is considered the
highlight of the cruise, and it was the reason why we booked in the first place.
However, the captain reported that morning that because of weather conditions,
the ship would not be able to dock on the island. The entire day was spent on
sea with few activities or entertainment. The next day was supposed to be in
Key West, however the captain reported again that weather conditions were not
ideal and we wouldn’t be able to dock. Out of the three places we were supposed
to visit, we only went to one. Everyone on the cruise was very upset, as we
spent nearly three whole days on the sea with nothing to do. When we contacted
the customer service after the cruise, they claimed they held no responsibility
and that we could not get any compensation. We ended up calling several
different representatives, but they only repeated that it was not their
responsibility and that we couldn’t do anything to get any refunds.

duck1685

My family
recently cruised on Royal Caribbean Cruises, Majesty of the Seas, for three
days and four nights. It was the most recommended and had the best reviews. The
first night was spent in Miami, the next day was spent in Nassau, and the ship
was scheduled to arrive in CocoCay by the second day. This is considered the
highlight of the cruise, and it was the reason why we booked in the first place.
However, the captain reported that morning that because of weather conditions,
the ship would not be able to dock on the island. The entire day was spent on
sea with few activities or entertainment. The next day was supposed to be in
Key West, however the captain reported again that weather conditions were not
ideal and we wouldn’t be able to dock. Out of the three places we were supposed
to visit, we only went to one. Everyone on the cruise was very upset, as we
spent nearly three whole days on the sea with nothing to do. When we contacted
the customer service after the cruise, they claimed they held no responsibility
and that we could not get any compensation. We ended up calling several
different representatives, but they only repeated that it was not their
responsibility and that we couldn’t do anything to get any refunds.

Galyna Tate

Great, detailed review! Thank you!

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My mother took an overnight or three day cruise many years ago up the Saguenay to Lac St. Jean. I am looking to find a cruise that leaves from Quebec City or Montreal that will take me on a similar cruise. Would you have information on this?